Former Duke standout Jeff Capel joined the Duke staff as an assistant coach on May 6, 2011, after spending the previous nine years as the head coach at Virginia Commonwealth (2002-06) and Oklahoma (2006-11). He was promoted to associate coach in July of 2013 and then named associate head coach prior to the 2014-15 season.

Capel owns a 175-110 record as a head coach with three NCAA Tournament appearances, including a trip to the Elite Eight in 2008 with Oklahoma.

In five seasons on the Duke coaching staff, Capel has seen the program compile a 143-37 (.794) record with a 64-22 (.744) mark in ACC regular season play. The Blue Devils have earned a top three seed in the NCAA Tournament four times, won the NCAA Championship in 2015 and reached the Elite Eight in 2013.

Capel has been instrumental on the recruiting trail, helping Duke secure commitments from 12 McDonald’s All-Americans, including six in the past two seasons. The Blue Devils had consensus No. 1 recruiting classes in 2014 and 2015, and were ranked No. 1 by numerous outlets in 2016.

Capel also played an integral role with USA Basketball over Mike Krzyzewski’s last four years as National Team head coach, serving as court coach and scout with the USA Basketball Men’s Senior National Team in July of 2013, assisting the staff throughout Team USA’s gold-medal effort at the 2014 FIBA World Cup in Spain and reprising his role as staff assistant for the United States’ unprecedented run to a third consecutive Olympic gold medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Capel has been instrumental in the development of the elite young talent in the Duke program since his return to Durham, helping mentor numerous players to lofty collegiate accolades and NBA Draft selections.

In 2013-14, Capel played a key role in the development of National Freshman of the Year Jabari Parker and All-ACC wing Rodney Hood. Parker set or tied nine Duke freshman records en route to becoming Duke’s second National Freshman of the Year, while Hood averaged 16.1 points and shot an ACC-best .420 from three-point range. Parker and Hood were selected No. 2 and No. 23 overall in the 2014 NBA Draft, respectively, by Milwaukee and Utah.

The 2014-15 season saw Capel serve as a mentor to future lottery picks Jahlil Okafor and Justise Winslow as Duke powered its way to the fifth national championship in program history. Okafor turned in a dominant campaign in his one season at Duke, earning unanimous first-team All-America honors, garnering Duke’s second consecutive National Freshman of the Year award and becoming the first freshman in ACC history to be named league Player of the Year. A double-figure scorer and versatile defender, Winslow was a force in the Blue Devils’ NCAA Tournament run, earning South Regional and Final Four All-Tournament Team recognition.

Capel’s influence was vital to freshman Brandon Ingram during the 2015-16 campaign, as the Kinston, N.C., native established himself as a Freshman All-American and the ACC Freshman of the Year during a torrid campaign. Ingram averaged 17.3 points and 6.8 rebounds for Duke before the Los Angeles Lakers selected him No. 2 overall in the 2016 NBA Draft.

Hood, Ingram, Okafor, Parker and Winslow were all named to the USA Men’s Select Team that was chosen to compete against the U.S. Olympic Team during its training camp in July 2016.

Capel began his coaching career as an assistant coach under his father, Jeff Capel II, at Old Dominion University for the 2000–01 season. In 2001, he joined the coaching staff at VCU as an assistant and was promoted to head coach of the Rams for the 2002–03 season—making him, at the time, the youngest head coach in Division I men’s college basketball (27 years old).

In 2003-04, Capel guided the Rams to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in almost a decade, nearly upsetting fourth-seeded Wake Forest before falling by a score of 79-78. Capel led VCU to an NIT berth in 2004-05.

Capel compiled a 79-41 (.658) record, including a 50-22 (.694) mark in the CAA, over four years as head coach at VCU prior to being named the head coach at Oklahoma on April 11, 2006.

While at Oklahoma, Capel led the Sooners to a 96-69 (.582) record overall with two NCAA Tournament trips (2008 & 2009) and was a major factor in the recruitment and development of 2009 National Player of the Year Blake Griffin. Griffin became the first player from Oklahoma to be selected No. 1 in the NBA Draft before becoming the 2011 NBA Rookie of the Year and the 2011 NBA Slam Dunk champion.

Capel signed Griffin, a McDonald’s All-American, in his first full recruiting class and the Sooners quickly showed vast signs of improvement. Oklahoma finished the year 23-12 overall and earned a No. 6 seed in the 2008 NCAA Tournament. Capel earned his first NCAA Tournament victory with an opening-round win over St. Joseph’s.

In 2008-09, Oklahoma experienced one of the best seasons in school history as the Capel-led Sooners finished 30-6 and reached the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament. The Sooners opened the year 25-1 to reach No. 2 in the AP Poll. Capel’s Sooners earned a No. 2 seed for the NCAA Tournament, and easily beat Morgan State, Michigan and Syracuse to reach the Elite Eight. Oklahoma fell to eventual NCAA champion North Carolina, 72-60, despite another outstanding performance from Griffin. The unanimous All-America selection and National Player of the Year finished the NCAA Tournament with 114 points and 60 rebounds, becoming the first player to reach such milestones in over 40 years.

Capel also has coaching experience on the international level with USA Basketball. In the summer of 2010, he led a USA team featuring former Duke stars Kyrie Irving and Austin Rivers to a 5-0 record and the gold medal at the FIBA Americas U18 Championship in San Antonio, Texas. He was also an assistant coach on a gold-medal-winning USA Men’s World University Games Team that featured Duke All-American and two-time National Defensive Player of the Year Shelden Williams in Turkey in 2005.

A standout prep performer, Capel was named the 1993 North Carolina High School Player of the Year after averaging 23.8 points, 5.1 rebounds and 7.7 assists for 31-1 state champion Fayetteville South View. He also set school career records for points (2,066), rebounds (668) and assists (663).

During his successful playing career as a Blue Devil, Capel racked up 1,601 points, 433 assists and 220 three-point field goals. He finished his career among Duke’s all-time leaders in minutes played, three-point field goal percentage, three-point field goals and assists. He was a four-year starter for the Blue Devils, helping the team to an 83-46 record and a trip to the 1994 NCAA Championship game. Capel started 28 games as a freshman for a Duke squad that lost to Arkansas in the 1994 national championship game, 76-72.

On February 2, 1995, in the regular season game played at home against North Carolina, with Duke trailing 95–92 at the end of the first overtime, Capel hit a running 40-foot shot at the buzzer which sent the game into double-overtime. Although Duke lost the game, 102–100, Capel’s shot was hailed as one of the most memorable plays in Duke basketball history and it was nominated for an ESPY Award for College Basketball Play of the Year.

Capel led the Blue Devils in scoring as a junior (16.6) and helped Duke to a No. 8 final AP ranking as a senior. He averaged 26.5 points over Duke’s two NCAA Tournament games in 1997, the same season he was named an Academic All-ACC selection.

Following his career at Duke, Capel played professionally for two years. He spent the 1997-98 season playing for the Continental Basketball Association’s Grand Rapids Hoops. In 1999-2000, he played in France before returning to Grand Rapids. Capel was also drafted in 1997 by the Raleigh Cougars of the USBL.

Capel, who graduated from Duke with a bachelor’s degree in history in 1997, and his wife, Kanika, married in 2003. They have two daughters, Cameron and Sydney, and a son, Elijiah.

Capel’s younger brother, Jason, was a four-year starter at North Carolina and was the head coach at Appalachian State from 2011-14.